Rhone-Alpes

Montélimar Christmas Market (Drome, Rhone-Alps) runs from 19 to 24 Dec 2008. Most of us zoom past on the Autoroute south to Provence, but it could provide a welcome break in the journey,

Montélimar, the capital of nougat and gateway to Provence, celebrates Christmas with a Christmas village and market in the St Martin quarter - with tourist train, christmas lights, christmas carols - and stalls to entice you with tastings of soup,  tartiflette (a warming alpine dish of cheese, potatoes and bacon), French toasts or eggy bread (pains perdus), oysters, local wines from the Coteaux du Tricastin, roast chestnuts, mulled wine and, of course,nougat…

For more info see www.montelimar-tourisme.com/

I can understand the attraction of fishing, but have never dabbled, always arguing that I do not have enough time to indulge in an activity which is so quintissentially time-consuming. Like all the best leisure pursuits, I suspect fishing enables you to escape into another world which is virtually timeless and far removed from the pressures of modern life.

To be able to pursue this interest in the heart of France in a beautiful setting, dominated by a fine chateau, looks even more tempting - and this is what is on offer at the Chateau de Tigny at Pouilly-Sous-Charlieu (42 Loire, Rhone-Alpes) north of Roanne near Charlieu.

Here Tony and Lorraine Dicks bought the chateau some 18 months ago, since when they have been renovating the chateau, preparing and stocking the lake and coping with French bureaucracy. The result looks to be stunning, with some gite acccommodation also coming on stream in 2009!

The charming medieval village of Charlieu is steeped in history and was founded in 875 by Benedictine monks from the Touraine. Charlieu has many attractions such as the Abbey Benedictine, a beautiful church, museums, plus many bars, shops and restaurants. Surrounded by country lanes and woodlands Charlieu is an idyllic place suitable for walking, cycling and enjoying the fresh country air. There are many local town markets open during the week so there is always plenty to do.

The enchanting Chateau de Tigny is a 16th century French Bourguignon style castle complete with two towers and a beautiful pigeonnier. The Chateau is surrounded by a moat on three sides.
Situated in front of the Chateau is a tranquil, 12 acre lake stocked with large Carp making Chateau de Tigny a most desirable place for Carp fishing holiday’s. The lake is for 1- 6 anglers.
Either stay in our luxury bed and breakfast accommodation or you can choose the “Drive-and Survive” package. The Chateau offers two luxury suites of accommodation. The Queen Ann suite has a romantic four-poster bed and the Rococo suite, comprising of a double and two single beds, which can sleep up to a family of four. The rooms are both en-suite and a continental breakfast is included.

And, whilst the main attraction may be the carp fishing for some, there is plenty for non-anglers to enjoyThere are resident Barn Owls in the front Tower, Red Squirrels , Eagles and Hawks around the grounds with kingfishers on the lake, ducks on the islands and the occasional deer in the fields behind the lake - ideal if you are in to photography, painting or just enjoying the tranquility of the French countryside!

For more info see www.chateaudetigny.com

For more info on Charlieu see www.ville-charlieu.fr

Each July the French get very excited about 180 or more professional cyclists who cover 3,500km over three weeks racing around France, including staggering climbs in the Alps and Pyrenees.

Tour de France 2009

With lots of razzamataz, commercial sponsorship, scandal and sporting achievement, it is a spectacle well worth seeing - especially as it is free. However, the downside is that the Tour can cause major disruption with roads closed for hours, hordes of people and traffic - and all hotel rooms along the route booked.
In 2009 the tour starts in Monaco on 4 July 2009, travels down the Mediterranean coast into Spain to Barcelona - then up through Andorra to the Pyrenees. With a skip to Central France the route heads east through northern Burgundy to Alsace, south the the Alpes and then heads for Paris and the final stage which finishes on the Champs Elysees on 26 July 2009.
Sat 4 July Monaco
Sun 5 July Monaco > Brignoles
Mon 6 July Marseille > La Grande-Motte
Tue 7 July Montpellier
Wed 8 July Le Cap d’Agde > Perpignan
Thu 9 July Gérona > Barcelona (Spain)
Fri 10 July Barcelona > Andorra
Sat 11 July Andorra> Saint-Girons
Sun 12 July Saint-Gaudens > Tarbes
Mon 13 July rest day - Limoges
Tue 14 July Limoges > Issoudun
Wed 15 July Vatan > Saint-Fargeau
Thu 16 July Tonnerre > Vittel
Fri 17 July Vittel > Colmar
Sat 18 July Colmar > Besançon
Sun 19 July Pontarlier > Verbier
Mon 20 July rest day - Verbier
Tue 21 July Martigny > Bourg-Saint-Maurice
Wed 22 July Bourg-Saint-Maurice > Le Grand-Bornand
Thu 23 July Annecy > Annecy
Fri 24 July Bourgoin-Jallieu > Aubenas
Sat 25 July Montélimar > Mont Ventoux
Sun 26 July Montereau-Fault-Yonne > Paris Champs-Élysées

For more info on the Tour de France see www.letour.fr

It began in 1972 when a journalist challenged Fleet Street to “Bring Back the Beaujolais” to London copying the similar “race” to get the first bottle of Beaujolais Nouveau wine to Paris. In those days the new vintage of Beaujolais Nouveau could not by law be allowed to leave the producers’ cellars near Macon until midnight on the first Thursay in November. Hence numerous serious (and not so serious) attempts were made by car, train, plane etc to get the first bottles to London but the RAF rather spoiled the party by using a Harrier Jump-Jet and broke all records!

Of course, in the meantime, the popularity of Beaujolais Nouveau has plummeted, so much so that it can be difficult to find in the UK, and many wine merchants do not bother to import it. Our tastes have changed in the last 36 years and we now have such a wide range of more interesting and better value wines to choose from. The tragedy is that much in the way that Liebfraumilch tarnished the image of much better German wines, so Nouveau led consumers to avoid proper Beaujolais, which whilst still a ligher fruitier style than say Syrah, can nevertheless offer some classy drinking and some wines of depth and complexity.

However, there is still a celebration of Nouveau and its Anglo-French tradition with a charity event using classic British cars, and focussed more on fundraising and the shortest distance rather than speed. The only drawback of this approach is that many classic sports cars have precious little boot space for those cases of wine!

In 2006, by kind permission by Lord March, The Beaujolais Run® made its spiritual home at Goodwood. In the same year, the event became a five day event showcasing the best the UK and France has to offer. Hackett is synonymous with this as overall event sponsor.

For 2008 The Beaujolais Run® hits London and Paris. Starting by kind permission of Sir Terence Conran from Bibendum in Kensington. The ‘Run then halts in Paris for a reception at the British Embassy before the following day sees the navigational shoot out at the heart of the event en route to Macon. A black tie prize giving dinner awaits competitors in Paris on the return leg, before returning to London to light up the King Road to celebrate the return of the new harvest.

The Beaujolais Run ® has evolved to become a navigational shoot out over a cryptic checkpoint course in deepest Burgundy. This format ensures Austin and Aston, Jaguar and Jalpa and Porsche and Prius can compete on a level playing field. Maps, Sat Nav and Laptops are all acceptable modes of navigation on the event. Teams compete for the honour of achieving P1 on the grid the following year (highest fundraising team) and P2, the team that covers the shortest distance on the navigational trial.

For more info on The Beaujolais Run ® see www.beaujolaisrun.com

For 2008 Beaujolais Nouveau day is Thursday 21 November 2008. A reliable supplier of decent Beaujolais and Beaujolais Nouveau is Nick Dobson Wines

UPDATE - I hear from Ed Green that there is at least one other Beaujolais event:-

Hackett is not the only “Charity Bojolly Run”. We have been running an event for over 20 years and for the past decade we have offered Quality Crus to match trhe Crews and Cruise. We run our event from deep in Beaujolais (Blace to be precise)and use local producers including those in Fleurie. Hackett is an event for the well heeled who can afford anythingand they don’t seem to actually go into Beuajolais (ie they stop in Macon and Paris?). Our event will be covering the Beaujolais Crus and making a visit to Champagne while working for two charities. Anyone interested in the 2009 event - get in touch with me (tedgreen49@yahoo.co.uk). And furthermore it is NOT a race. It’s a navigation skills event.

The sparkling wine appellation of Clairette de Die holds its Festival de la Clairette de Die on Saturday 6 September 2008 in the village of Vercheny (26 Drome, Rhone-Alpes), a vertiable feast of local food and all aspects of wine-making and drinking - with the added bonus of a local food market, music, dancing and ceremony!
Clairette de Die AC is a sparkling wine made east of the Rhone Valley between Montelimar and Valence. It is made from the Clairette and Muscat grapes, and tends to be light, fruity/grapey and refreshing - not to be confused with the drier Cremant de Die AC which is made solely from the Clairette grape. So just to clarify - Clairette de Die tends to be mainly Muscat - whilst Cremant de Die is mainly Clairette!!?!

Clairette de Die is a naturally sparkling white wine, which is characterised by its fruity flavour and its floral aromas. No sugar is added during the production process. There is simply no need, since tasting it is like biting into an extremely ripe fruit, an apricot or a peach, and simultaneously inhaling the aroma of white flowers such as the rose, eglantine, or honeysuckle. The colour can be more or less intense, ranging from an extremely pale straw colour to golden, depending on the method of production used by the winemaker. The sugar contained in Clairette is derived solely from the grapes, which means that this is a naturally sweet wine.

For more about the area and the festival see http://www.diois-tourisme.com/

For more about the wine appellation see http://www.clairette-de-die.com

The Telegraph (19 Aug 08) includes a boat trip up the Rhone Valley as one of its top 10 river cruises:

Navigating France’s mightiest river is a favourite for wine aficionados and foodies. A cruise through Burgundy and Provence gives you the chance to visit vineyards (think Côtes du Rhône and Châteauneuf-du-Pape), explore Lyon – the gourmet capital of France – and enjoy historic towns such as the fortified city of Avignon and the Roman ruins in Arles. The countryside is equally superb: its fields of lavender and sunflowers were an inspiration for artists such as Vincent Van Gogh, and as the river drains into the Mediterranean you’ll see the famous white horses of the Camargue.

The route includes many worthwhile stops for visits to suit all tastes, but it is also remarkably rich in potential wine visits as you’ll pass through appellations such as Costieres de Nimes, Cotes du Rhone (north and south), Lirac, Tavel, Chateauneuf-du-Pape, St Joseph and Hermitage - and if you branch onto the River Saone north of Lyon you can explore Beuajolais and southern Burgundy!

It should come as little surprise that rivers and canals tend to offer good access to good vineyards - vines often grow best on the steep valley sides with their good drainage and aspect to the sun.

A more modest trip than the Rhone, could be a canal trip from Auxerre (89 Yonne, Burgundy) close to Chablis and down the Canal de Bourgogne to Dijon and the Burgundy vineyards; or a trip down the Canal Lateral de la Loire for Sancerre AC, Pouilly-Fumé and Coteaux Giennois. By using the Canal du Nivernais and the Canal de Briare you could even manage a circular route via Auxerre.

Of course, Rick Stein’s French Odyssey was based on a canal trip along the Canal du Midi and the Canal Lateral de la Garonne and included the vineyards of Bordeaux, Cotes du Marmandais, Buzet, Fronton, Minervois, Corbieres and the Coteaux du Languedoc.

For another set of options try Hilary Wright’s book Water into Wine: A Wine Lover’s Journey Through The Waterways of France which also includes itineraries in the lower Loire. Cognac, Alsace, Lorraiine and the Lot.

For more info on the canals of France see the website for VNF (Voies Navigable de la France) now much improved and in English!